A panicked Indiana mother called the police on June 6 to report her baby had been kidnapped. The infant was reportedly inside the woman's car when she dropped off another child at an Evansville day care.
When she came out of the building seconds later, the car and her baby seemed to have disappeared. But after the police got involved, she learned it was all just one big mistake.
Sergeant Nick Winsett of the Evansville Police Department told the Evansville Courier & Press there was no kidnapping or stolen vehicle. A car dealership had apparently repossessed the woman's car. Thankfully, the 7-day-old baby girl was unharmed and reunited with her mom a short time later.
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The woman was reportedly dropping off her older son at day care.
The unnamed woman was taking her older son to day care and left the newborn in the car while she took him inside, according to WFIE. The mom reportedly left the car running, and when she returned, she found both her car and the baby were gone. She called police around 11 a.m. to report the alleged kidnapping.
"I am a good mom. I was dropping my son off into day care. It was two seconds," she told WFIE.
Police knew about the car prior to the repossession.
Winsett told the Courier & Press that repossession agents had notified police they were looking for a Ford Focus and would take possession of the car if the opportunity presented itself.
Agents allegedly found the vehicle at Cookie's Daycare parked, running, and with the driver's side door open. One of the agents slipped into the car and drove off.
Winsett said agents had been "looking for the vehicle for some time," and the repossession was "a civil matter."
The agents apparently didn't see the baby.
Winsett told the Courier & Press that as soon as the agents were notified about the baby's presence in the car, they stopped the vehicle.
"As far as the infant being inside, they had no idea about that," he said. "Once dispatch called them back, they pulled over right away."
Evansville police officers met the agents at Wolfe's Auto Auction and reunited the infant with her mother a short time later.
It appears to be a big misunderstanding.
The baby was not harmed during the repossession efforts and was returned to her mother. Winsett said it didn't appear anyone would face charges in the case, but he thinks this was a lesson for everyone involved.
"This sounds like it was a huge mistake," he said. "From now on, they'll probably check that back seat before they drive off."
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The incident sparked conversation on social media.
Although the mother and the repossession company remain unidentified, many people on 21Alive's Facebook page had thoughts about what happened and were quick to point fingers.
Some blame the mom. "The parent(s) need to be charged I don't get why people do this…either take the child in with you, stay home or find a babysitter," one person wrote.
Others thought the repossession agents were at fault.
"The Repo guy should be fired if not arrested for child endangerment and kidnapping. The mother should also be looked at for her terrible judgment leaving a newborn alone in the car," another comment reads.
And this person thought everyone was wrong: "So the mom is in the wrong for leaving a brand spanking new child in the car ( and not paying her bills) but also let's ignore that the repo man is kinda in the wrong for not properly checking the vehicle before taking it.
"The child could have been any age and got left in that car," the commenter continued. "You cannot tow while a living being is inside the vehicle. It's a hazard. They both r in the wrong. One is just WAYYYYY worse lol."
